


The Least I can Do

by Dramatiq1



Category: The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance (TV)
Genre: Alternate Ending, Angst, Blood and Gore, Character Death, F/M, First Kiss, Murder-Suicide, One Shot, What Have I Done
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-19
Updated: 2020-09-19
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:01:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26536972
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dramatiq1/pseuds/Dramatiq1
Summary: There is no other way to save her. The decision had been made, but it's not a decision Rian can handleOR an alternate ending where they can't be able to save Deet
Relationships: Deet/Rian (Dark Crystal)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 12





	The Least I can Do

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally going to be a comic but I couldn't bring my self through the torture of drawing it so I thought, fuck it! I'm just going to write it out instead.

Rian made his way through the bushes and weeds of the forest, following the darkened veins on the ground and plants around him. He had to find her, and the quicker he found her the faster he could get this over with. Then he stopped, tears stung his eyes but he quickly wiped them away and pressed on. 'There is no other way to save her Rian, you know that!' He played those words on replay in his mind as he continued deeper into the forest. He remembered what he said, the decision was final..   
~{THE DAY BEFORE}~  
The journey to Aughra's observatory had been long, but it would be worth it, if Aughra knew a way to help Deet. Brea, Gurjin, Naia, and Kylan came along with Rian on the journey, he didn't ask them to come but they insisted. When they stepped into the observatory the first thing they saw was the great orrery turning in repeated motions, and on the other side of the orrery was mother Aughra meddling with scrolls and books. She must not have heard them come in.  
"Um.. mother Aughra?" Brea called out  
Aughra turned her head to look at them  
"Hmm, gelfling! What is it? Aughra is very busy you know"  
Brea nodded "Yes we know that, but it's very important. It's about our friend Deet, she's.. well-"  
"She's infected with the darkening! When the Emperor shot it at her back at stone-in-the-wood she absorbed all of it, and we need to know how we can help her!" Rian cut in.  
Aughra's eye widened and she muttered something under her breath as she slowly shook her head. There was a long pause before she spoke.  
"I've seen what the darkening can do, if nothing is done about it…" she paused again.   
"Well she isn't as violent as the animals I've come across, when I followed her she didn't attack me or anything I-"  
"No Rian, I mean that the darkening.. it's killing her, and if she did get infected back at the last battle at Stone-in-the-wood then… it's already too late, if she hasn't returned to Thra by now then she is on a slow path to it."  
The room fell silent, and Rian felt light headed and was about to pass out before Gurjin rushed in and caught him before he fell.  
"Rian, are you okay ?"  
Rian must not have answered because he repeated the question. Rian turned to him and said.  
"I-uh… I need a minute." He ran out of the observatory and took in the fresh air. He looked down at the ground trying to process what mother Aughra had said, then he took his anger out on the small rocks and pebbles violently kicking and throwing them off the cliff until he fell to his knees and started crying. Nothing we can do? There's nothing they can do!? She's gone?! No he refused to believe it, there has to be a way, there has to be. After a few minutes he heard footsteps walking towards him, he saw from the corner of his eye that it was Brea. She sat next to him and for a few seconds neither of them said anything, until Brea finally spoke.  
"So, what do we do now?"  
He didn't respond, instead he just threw his arms around her in a tight hug.  
"This can't be it Brea, we have to help her."  
Tears fell down her cheeks.  
"But what can we do Rian?"  
Neither of them was able to answer that question..

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*  
When they returned to Stone-In-the-wood they discussed a plan on what to do next, the argument went on for hours.  
"Well surely we can't just leave her out there to die."   
Gurjin shook his head "Naia we know that, but there's nothing we can do." Rian was leaning against the door frame to the room.  
"Well there is one thing I thought of.." Brea said after being silent throughout the entire meeting. Rian Looked at her.  
"What!? What is it?"   
Brea had her arms crossed and she was looking at the ground, refusing to make eye contact.  
"We all heard Aughra, we can't heal her and right now, she could already be dead, or going through a slow painful one."  
"Where is this going?" Rian asked  
Brea started crying.  
"I-I- thought..."  
"Brea..?"   
"That maybe the least we could do is put her out of her misery!"  
Rian's eyes went wide, he couldn't believe what he just heard his friend say, it sounded almost like treason, no, it was treason, to him at least. He tightened his hands into fists and, without a word, walked out of the room and he made sure to slam the door as hard as he could. As soon as he made it to his room he ran to his bed and started crying again. This wasn't fair, not to Deet, not to him, not to anyone. Did the world hate him? First he lost Mira, then he almost lost his best friend Gurjin, then the whole world turned against him, even his own father, and then eventually he lost him too, and now Deet. The kind girl that helped him with his fire in the forest, the first gelfling who listened to him, who trusted him.  
"Well I don't think you're a monster."  
Rian didn't know how badly he wanted to hear those words until then, but now.. Now she was gone, infected with the darkening, and she didn't do anything to deserve it. 'What would she do if she was here, not him and he was the one who was infected?' Rian wondered, 'what would she want? she would want to do what would be best for him… even if that means having him killed.' And Rian made his decision. 

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*  
"Is he okay?" Kylan asked. "He's been in there for almost an hour."  
"I'll go check on him." Gurjin walked to his door and just before he knocked Rian opened the door. Brea stepped forward.  
"Rian I'm sorry, it- the idea was-"  
"I'll do it." Rian spoke just above a whisper.  
"What?"  
"I'll do it, who knows, she's probably already dead."  
Rian's voice was empty and had no emotion in it at all.  
"Rian, are you sure you want to-"  
"My mind's made up."  
He grabbed his cloak and walked out the door, no one said or did anything as he opened the door and left.  
~~~  
Now here he was, the suns have started setting and a nice cool breeze met him as he continued following the darkened trail. A small part of him hoped that she has already returned to Thra, but then he heard something, he slowly walked towards the noise and there she was. She was on her knees in front of an animal, it was also darkened. Deet's hands lit up as she extracted darkening from the creature, when the critter was healed it scattered away, and left Deet there, and from where Rian was standing he could see her hands shaking and struggling to breathe.   
It broke his heart, she turned around and saw him, she immediately tried to get up to get away but her body was too corrupted and it just gave out. She backed up against a tree, her eyes were wild, confused, and scared. He slowly kneeled down to her level and moved forward so he was only a foot or two away from her.  
"Deet? It's me, Rian. Don't you recognize me?"  
She didn't answer, she just continued looking at him with a terrified look, the kind of look you'd see on a trapped wild animal. He sat there and looked at her for a while, his eyes focused on her face, on her purple eyes that was once a dark brown, that once gave him hope during dark times. He reached for the handle of his blade but he couldn't bring himself to draw it, instead he moved forward and embraced her in a tight hug. She struggled to free herself from his grip but he held on and eventually she gave up and just sat there. Tears fell down Rian's cheeks, and that's when he finally broke.  
"I-I'm so sorry… this wasn't supposed to happen. I could have done s-something, if I had payed closer attention, i-if I had protected you if I had tried I probably could have helped you."  
He let go of her so he could look at her face again, and for some reason he thought he would see something, anything that would give him the slightest hint that she was still in there somewhere. Only he didn't see anything, her eyes were still wide and empty and that's where the true reality set in, she really was gone. He pressed his hand against her cheek, she felt ice cold against his hand, Rian closed his eyes and quickly leaned forward to press a kiss on her lips. It felt so cold it almost burned, but he kept his lips against hers, and with a quick move of his hand jabbed the blade of his handle into her side. She made a sharp inhale and their lips parted, Rian kept his eyes closed as she leaned against him, took a couple quick half breaths before falling still in his arms. That was Rian' s breaking point, he let out a pained cry as he held her body close to him.  
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! Please forgive me! I'm sorry!"  
He had to of repeated that apology a thousand times before his voice became too hoarse to speak. A few minutes passed, then an hour, then two hours, soon the suns started setting, but Rian didn't notice nor did he care, he looked at Deet's face, her eyes were still open, the veins still lingered dark and purple on her face. Rian placed one last kiss on her lips before closing her eyes and placing her body on the ground. He straightened her legs and placed her hands on her chest, then he picked a bouquet of white flowers that were nearby and put them in her hands, he took the extra petals to decorate in her hair, and place them around her body. Rian sat there in silence, sat there for a while, tears falling down his cheeks. The sky was now a mixture of pinks and oranges, and the wind was growing cold. Rian knew that everyone was probably wondering where he was, but what did it matter? Nothing really mattered to him anymore, Deet seemed to be the only thing that kept him going, she gave him the will to live, but now she's gone.. as well as everyone else that he loved, and by his own hand.   
"I'm sorry…"  
He said once again. His hand moved slightly to the right and nudged something sitting next to him. For a second he thought it might have been a rock, but then he looked down and saw it was his dagger, the blade still covered in Deet's blood. He picked it up and looked at it, watched the blood trickle down the blade, and to the handle. That's when he thought of it, it started as a small spark at the back of his mind, but then grew into a flame. Then he paused, should he really do this? Once you do it you can't go back… then he looked at her body, covered in flower petals and, in a way, looking peaceful. And Rian made his decision.  
He took Deet' s hand and held the blade to his throat. He kissed her hand and whispered  
"I love you.."  
he slid the blade against his throat. It stung as it opened the skin, and he felt his warm blood coat the front of his tunic, blood started pouring from his mouth and he gasped for one last breath of air before he fell. Dead. He still held her hand, a promise that he will be with her forever, never again will he leave her behind. A promise he will never break..

**Author's Note:**

> God what have I done?!?! I REALLY hope something like this doesn't happen in the show. Now I'm gonna cry in a corner for a while.


End file.
